Date: 6/6/23                                                                                                                      

Researcher: Atlas

Expedition day: 3                                                                                                              

Position: Upper Canopy Surveyor                                                                                 

Region: Kiah                                                                                                                      

Research Subject: Volan

Expedition Research log day 3

Morning Notes and Setup

Morning notes: It has been a long morning but the sun is finally starting to set. We have had some rain today but it looks like the temperature is going to be slightly cooler tonight. I have finally managed to find these night flowers that my research notes state are the primary food source of these creatures. The local fauna seem to be very lively today compared to the others. The Dyno Beebles have been out in force today. I’ve seen them on numerous trees as I was gliding through the canopy. They were nestled on the lower braches eating the leaves. I also believe I heard the cracking of some something while I was resting. I wonder if it could be the elusive Nuiian Teropita that has eluded the team for some time. If tonight is a success I plan on setting out and investigating that area in the morning. The Volans seemed to be more nocturnal; they will rest in the sunlight so that can produce energy using the plant cells in their body. Using this method it seems that it uses this produced energy to go out and forage at night.

Setup: After spotting a group of three Volan I started to canvas the area and managed to spot a group of flowers about 100 feet away from the sleeping group. My hope is that the flowers will open up tonight so I can finally get records of their eating habits. The flowers were hard to spot as they were in more of a shady part of the forest bed near a tree. The flowers appears to have a dark bluish hue which was making it hard to spot as the light was fading. Their location seemed to be at the perfect angle to be illuminated by the moon tonight giving me the perfect amount of light to record the eating habit with some adequate lighting. I was able to secure a nice spot in the higher part of the canopy. There was an exceptionally nice spot covered by leaves.  While obscured from the direct sight of the flower. These branches are strong enough to support my weight so I will probably have to hang upside down to get a good line of sight from this vantage point.

Research and Encounter notes

Log: It looks like my plan was the correct approach. The moon set and the dark blue flower opened to reveal a beautiful yellowish inside. It was quite a beautiful sight as the moon light reflected off the dew and nectar that was hidden inside the closed bud. About two hours later I heard the rustling of branches as the group of Volan I spotted earlier glided through the trees toward the plants. As they settled in I carefully lowered myself down using my tail. I gripped a large part of the trunk and lowered just enough to have my head peaking just under the leaves and branches that I was camouflaged in. It was tricky to get into position with the amount of foliage I was nested in but I managed to do it without making a sound.

Subject logs: The group of Volan were all different from one another. A record of the subjects can be seen below

Subject 1 - Meadow

Species: Volan                 Size: Below Average.      Age: Unknown                Sex: Unknown          

Description: Subject 1 (assigned name Meadow) has a wonderful greenish coat and a blueish fur on its back. It appeared to have a darker green tail though it was hard to spot even in the moonlight.

Subject 2 - Kai

Species: Volan                 Size: Average.                  Age: Unknown                 Sex: Unknown          

Description: Subject 2 (assigned name Kai) has a dark blueish coat similar to the color a clear night sky. It was an orange fur pattern on its back and greenish spots on its body and tail.

Subject 3 - Kiba

Species: Volan                 Size: Above Average.      Age: Unknown                 Sex: Unknown          

Description: Subject 3 (assigned name Kiba) was vastly different from the others. It appeared as a very dark purple. If I didn’t spot it in the morning I would of mistaken its coat color for the color black. It has a slightly lighter brown color for its spots and tail coloring and appeared to have a dark Burgundy fur color on its back. It seemed to be Melanistic, a rare trait that can occur within the species.

Interactions: The group seemed to be very friendly with one another. There were multiple flowers for them to eat from and there appeared to be no animosity or food aggression between the three even given their size difference. As they landed I could see them sniffing the air for any type of predators; luckily I was downwind from them so my scent was hidden and I was out of masking spray. After spending a few minutes sampling the air the two smaller ones turned and started drinking the sweet nectar from the flowers. Meadow and Kai gently dipped their snouts into the flower and used their tongue to rapidly dip in and out of the flower. The Kiba seemed to still be on alert acting as a lookout for the other two while they ate. I wonder if the grouping up was a survival instinct of if they are possible related to one another. As the two finished the Kiba dipped into the flowers as well. The other two began sniffing the air once again while licking the remaining amount of nectar from its snout. The tongues of the creatures were particularly long. I assume this is to reach of the bottom of these flowers. Several minutes later there was a loud snap of a branch to my left about 150ft away. This put the Volan into an alert state. They started sniffing the air rapidly and must have decided it was best to dart off and move out of the area as they took off away from the sound. Given what could lurk in the dark I would dart as well.

Ending summary

This expedition was a success. I will make my way back to camp in the morning and check in with the team. I wouldn’t want to run into an Ascadon at this time of night. I have not seen any in the three days I’ve been out but my notes indicate they are found within this region. Ill continue to stay hidden in this group of branches and leaves for the night. It should keep me adequately safe and hidden from the other local fauna while I rest. Who knew my ability to glow would come in handy with writing at this time at night.  It was awesome to get first hand sights of the Volans eating habits at night especially after that 3 day search. The notable interaction the Volan had while eating will provide valuable information as to the how these creatures act within a group or pack. I’m hoping there will be enough time within the remaining 2 days left to get some information on that cracking sound I heard earlier.

  -Atlas, Upper Canopy Survey Team.